Sisi touts victories for Egyptian women as election nears
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has made strides in politically empowering women in the past year and likely hopes the progress guarantees him a solid base of voters in the upcoming elections.
CAIRO — The Egyptian parliament approved an amendment on Jan. 14 to include new portfolios in Prime Minister Sharif Ismail’s government. The amendment, proposed by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, appoints Abu Bakr al-Jundi as minister of local development, Enas Abdul Dayem as minister of culture, Rania al-Mashat as minister of tourism and Khaled Mohammad Ali Badawi as minister of the business sector.
With this amendment, the Egyptian government would include six women holding ministerial portfolios, with Ghada Wali as minister of social solidarity, Hala al-Said as minister of planning and scientific research, Sahar Nasser as minister of international cooperation and Nabila Makram as minister of immigration and expatriate affairs, in addition to the newly appointed Abdul Dayem and Mashat.
During the Nation’s Story conference held on Jan. 17 in Cairo, Sisi courted Egyptian women, saying, “There has been increased interest in women since I became president, as they now constitute 15% of the parliament and 20% of the government,” compared to 12.7% in the 2010 parliament and 10.7% in 2012.
Sisi announced last March that 2017 would be “the year of Egyptian women,” and together with the National Council for Women directed the state institutions to follow the 2030 Women’s Empowerment Strategy as the working document for the coming years.
